Ban pesticides to save bees, MPs urge

The Environmental Audit Committee accused ministers of taking an “extraordinarily complacent approach” to protecting important pollinating insects such as bees.

Bees pollinate more than £1 billion worth of crops in the UK each year including fruits and vegetables such as carrots, cabbages, apples and pears.

Numbers of the insects have declined dramatically over the past 25 years and there are fears that the use of a common type of pesticides known as neonicotinoids may be playing a role.

Many countries have already implemented a ban on their use on crops and the European Commission has also attempted to restrict their use, but the British government has called for greater scientific evidence before it takes any action.